No data? No problem! Not even the Summer Bank holiday in the U.K. was enough to stop sterling from edging higher against its peers while the Greenback was dragged down by Hurricane Harvey.

Euro zone private loans up by 2.6% y/y vs. 2.7% forecast

Swiss non-farm payrolls up 0.4% in Q2

U.K. banks closed for the Summer Bank holiday

Major Events/Reports

U.K. and German companies share Brexit views

It looks like Brexit jitters are starting to creep up on European businesses as the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and the Association of German Chambers of Commerce (DIHK) called upon political leaders to build an atmosphere of mutual trust and constructive dialogue” to ease uncertainties.

In particular, both groups agreed that issues such as workers’ rights, tax and customs arrangements need to be discussed right away and that businesses should be allowed at least a 3-year period of transition. Keep in mind that Germany and the U.K. have huge stakes in each others’ businesses when it comes to exports and employment.

According to DIHK Chief Executive Martin Wansleben, several German companies are worried about the negative repercussions of Brexit as trade barriers and bureaucracy could make it more difficult to do business. He mentioned:

Many of our members are reporting that they are already shifting investments away from the UK in anticipation of these barriers.

Risk appetite stays afloat

Even with a fresh batch of risks facing the global markets such as Hurricane Harvey and the continuation of Brexit talks, risk-on vibes were still present for the most part of Monday’s European trading session.

Precious metals were in positive territory.

Gold was up by 0.16% to $1,303.39 per troy ounce

Silver was up by 1.03% to $17.224 per troy ounce

Oil benchmarks were mixed.

U.S. WTI crude oil was down by 0.90% to $47.42 per barrel

Brent crude oil was up by 0.13% to $52.05 per barrel

Major European equity indices, however, started the week on shaky footing as the shared currency’s gains strong gains after Draghi’s Jackson Hole speech are being blamed for fading business optimism.

German DAX is down 0.08% to 12,158.50

Euro Stoxx 50 is down 0.09% to 3,438.50

French CAC 40 is up 0.05% to 5,105.50

Major Market Mover(s):

GBP

The pound woke up on the right side of the bed as British traders were out enjoying the bank holiday.

GBP/USD is up to 1.2919 (+0.29%), GBP/JPY advanced from 141.09 to 141.24 (+0.28%), GBP/NZD reached a high of 1.7849 (+0.24%), and GBP/CAD is testing the 1.6100 mark (+0.10%).

USD

In contrast, the scrilla was off to a poor start as concerns about Hurricane Harvey and its impact on the U.S. oil industry weighed on the currency.

USD/CHF is down to .9543 (-0.20%), USD/CAD retreated from 1.2476 to 1.2456 (-0.18%), NZD/USD is up to .7245 (+0.07%), and AUD/USD is up from .7930 to .7948 (+0.19%).

Every day, I will present to you my findings and daily commentaries on what recently happened in the economic arena, possible shifts in sentiment, economic events to watch out for, and their effects on currencies.

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